The Dragon's Pearl
by Raptor whirlwind
Summary: POSTPG.London is struggling. Commoners and Magicians have reached an uneasy peace,not a lasting one. Amidst this,Lovelace commences his plan five years in the making, centering on an ancient pearl,rumored to control minds. Of the spirits. Kitty attempts to protect the fragile new world she created, but never expected she would meet Nathaniel again.Update: FEb?
1. Chapter 1

Bartimaeus

I had been taking my much needed break when I felt the hooks of a summoning dig into my already sore essence. To be honest I was peeved, I felt like not even a single day had passed since Natty-boy died and I was being summoned again! The nerve of those magicians!

As I appeared in the pentacle I took the form of a particularly nasty wolf with blood shot eyes, fangs dripping with saliva and mangy fur. "WHO DARES SUMMON ME, BARTIMAEUS OF URK, SAKHR-AL-JINNI, N'GROSO THE MIGHTY, SERPENT OF THE SIVER PLUMES," I bellowed, "WHO HAS SPOKEN WITH SOL-"I broke off…..

I had just noticed who summoned me.

Kitty stood in the other pentacle, she looked considerably better, the lines on her face had all but disappeared. She stared at me and pointedly raised an eyebrow.

With a huff, I changed to Ptolemy's guise and waited expectantly.

"Bartimaeus, you are alive!" she breathed, "I was certain you and Nathaniel had died with Nouda…wait…is….Nathaniel? Kitty asked hopefully.

"Well, I hate to ruin this happy reunion of ours…but no." I said blandly

Kitty's face fell

"But, he told me to say hello!" I added quickly, trying to make up for it.

Kitty started crying*

After an extremely awkward two minutes, I decided I couldn't take this anymore.

"So…"I said, "you couldn't have just summoned me here just to check if I was…um…alive, did you? Or did you have a charge? "*

..….Absolute Silence…

I shifted uncomfortably in the circle.

Tapped my foot, whistled a few tunes*…

Kitty sniffed, and then seemed to compose herself.

"Well…there was this little matter that had sprung up…" Kitty took a deep breath then continued, "Some magician by the name of Simon Lovelace is building a demon army and trying to place himself as Prime minister, which isn't that hard since half the government got wiped out along with the last Prime Minister in the demon revolt. Also the commoners have started staging more protests but so far, the remaining magicians have managed to keep it under control…Bartimaeus…what?"

I had stiffened the second I heard Simon Lovelace's name, not that Kitty noticed of course,

_Oh_ _no instead she _kept going on about something or the other.*

"Kitty" I said quietly, "what do you know about Simon Lovelace? * "

"Um…err…he's a magician, "kitty said nervously, perhaps picking up on my somber mood. "He wants to be Prime minister and…that's it"

"Are you sure?"I pushed, "anything like his background, history or past?"

Kitty frowned, "I don't…oh! I remember something…after the fish faced man slapped Nathaniel; he said "that's for what you did to Lovelace." So…I'm guessing Nathaniel did something to Lovelace?"

"Fish faced? ...oh _him," _I said, "yes, you're right, Nathaniel did something to Lovelace, indirectly killed him, to be exact. (With _my _help of course) It was all his fault really, if he hadn't stolen that amulet, none of it would have happened. Well I _did _try to warn him but he stubbornly went ahead with it anyway. And it doing so caused the death of his master and that precious little Mrs. Underwood of his, also caused his master's house to burn down, and if it wasn't for my quick thinking, bravado and wit, he would have died multiple times. And-"*

"Bartimaeus!" Kitty shouted, "_I get it_ okay?

"Bartimaeus, you have to help! If you don't, thousands of innocent people will die!"

"But-" I began

"Bartimaeus, please!"Kitty pleaded

"But still, it is too-"I tried

"What would Ptolemy have done?" *

I sighed, "What do you want me to do?"

"Lovelace plans to take out the rest of the government by using a powerful relic of the ancient times, the _dragon's pearl_. Perhaps you have heard of it? We have to get it before Lovelace does. I have learned that it is being guarded by a powerful demon in Prague."

I groaned, "as usual, we have to risk our lives for something that is next to impossible. Normally, when people actually say _powerful demon_ they mean a being that is even powerfuller than a myriad. Also I would prefer the term _sprit, demon_ is insulting." *

Kitty made a dismissive gesture, "Fine, fine, since it is such a powerful _sprit_, I've prepared some silver daggers and the amulet."

"That's _all?" _I said, "We're doomed."

*More like bawling but who was I to judge? The poor girl had just witnessed the death of a great (if slightly mad) entity called Nouda, oh and _him._

* Now, let's get one thing straight here, I, Bartimaeus of Urk, who has built walls for a great many masters whose names now lie forgotten, does _not_ go around asking for charges, generally speaking. In fact, I normally go out of my way to avoid them. But anymore of that wet, soppy nonsense you humans called crying and I would have gone soft and _maybe_ even have shed a few tears myself. (Notice I said Maybe, not that I would, or even could, as I may have mentioned before _dijin can't cry_)

* Any longer and I would have made an album.

* something about commoners and magicians, not that I was listening, I was too busy fuming over the fact that after all that effort me and Nathaniel had put into stopping him, here he has sprung up again, like some crazy _whack a mole_ game. Except the odds are a lot higher and that Nathaniel wouldn't be here to stop him, not this time.

* I asked this because some part of me still clung to the hope that maybe this was another idiot trying to take over in Simon Lovelace's name. That hope was dashed in no time.

* I was rudely cut off here

* She had a point, and at that moment I _knew _I was going to get tangled up in this whether I liked it or not.

* I'm pretty sure I said this before


	2. Chapter 2

Kitty

Kitty trudged up the dirt road. She had chosen a light handbag for the trip to Prague.

Now, what had she been thinking about, right, Bartimaeus, it had barely been a month since the "incident", and she had heard from Ms. Piper that the government, or what was left of it, had their hands full with the commoner protests. They had stopped after a while but there was still the occasional protest over some petty issue.

Even Though the severely depleted government was barely holding on, Ms. Piper seemed to be holding her own.

Kitty had, over time, gained a lot of respect for her.

Ms. Piper had asked Kitty to steal the Dragon's Pearl because it was the easiest way to stop Lovelace with the least number of casualties. Kitty had wanted to summon a dijin to accompany her, she had meant to summon another dijin but at the last second she had said Bartimaeus' name instead. Kitty didn't know why she did it, but she was overjoyed to find him alive and well.

_And_…had a mental breakdown when her hopes of Nathaniel being alive were dashed in a matter of minutes.

She had tried to dismiss Bartimaeus' comment about her light packing, but it stuck like a thorn.

In the end, she had reluctantly settled on bringing a few magical items along with a spell book.

Now she was walking into something that looked like a hollow tree with thick, leafy foliage. The locals told her this was where the Dragon's Pearl was hidden.

A warm breeze blew by and the wind charms hanging on the branches tinkled.

Bartimaeus strolled alongside her in his favorite guise, Ptolemy. She stepped into a hollow room inside the tree.

Suddenly there was a tinkle of wind chimes, Bartimaeus stepped back in alarm and quickly threw up a shield around him and Kitty.

A jackal wearing spectacles appeared in front of them.

The jackal frowned, "where are your manners, girl?"

Kitty hastily apologized while Bartimaeus took down the shield.

The jackal brightened, "that's better, name's Cinnamon by the way.

Cinnamon's amber eyes glanced over them, and then looked down at her notebook.

"Hmmm, you don't seem to have an appointment, but I will let you in for a fee." said Cinnamon, "we take magical objects and old books but no money, elemental spheres and the such."

Kitty peered into her bag, a few elemental spheres among other gimmicks, a clutter of silver knives, a brand new spell book and the amulet of Samarkand stared back at her. Kitty mentally scolded herself for not bringing anything of value, except…but she _couldn't…"_

"That will do, "Cinnamon suddenly took the amulet from the bag and dropped it with a cry as the amulet tried to suck her in.

Quick as lightning, Bartimaeus snatched it up and threw it to kitty.

She caught it deftly.

A blue flame erupted on Bartimaeus' hand

"Look here _Cinnamon,_" he snarled, "you are nothing but a _minor dijin_, now if you don't want to get burnt a crisp, you _will_ let us in."

Cinnamon didn't even seem fazed, "I do have backup, a _high level afrit _if you want to know the specifics."

Bartimaeus snorted, "by the time the afrit comes, you will be nothing but a _stain on the floor_."

Cinnamon's eyes narrowed, "just you try it."

In a desperate attempt to calm the situation, Kitty stepped forward and lobbed the amulet to Cinnamon.

Bartimaeus gaped at her, "Kitty! Are you out of your mind?"

Cinnamon swiftly put the amulet in a wooden box before it could do anymore damage to her essence.

"Good for you, I see the girl has finally come to her senses, if it makes you feel any better," she added almost kindly, "if you succeed in obtaining the pearl you will get it back. Now, can you follow me to your sleeping quarters as it is rather late. I'm sure you do not want to get the pearl at _night."_

Bartimaeus looked at Kitty, made a face, but wisely kept his mouth shut.


	3. Chapter 3

Bartimaeus

Two brown wings covered with fur unfurled from Cinnamon's back. She flapped them once and launched into the air.

Cinnamon looked back at me, "you may want to change into something more suitable and carry her." She advised. I did so, on a whim changing into a winged serpent. There was no point in arguing.

Kitty was still standing by the entrance to the tree. I grabbed her around the waist with my slender tail and took flight. It was quite uncomfortable; I briefly wondered why I had taken this form. Kitty was taking this quite well, considering she had just been grabbed by a giant green snake with wings and was now dangling by her legs thousands of meters in the air.

I stole a glance at her and saw she was looking down at the city in wonder.

"Never flown before?" I teased.

"I have! Once, when you saved me from the werewolves!" she protested

"I notice it is _save_ not _captured_, showing a bit of gratitude now huh?"

Kitty rolled her eyes, "whatever."

We were flying towards a _cloud? _This did not make any sense!

Suddenly, we rose above the cloud and saw it for the first time.

Kitty gasped, below us lay two houses, surrounded by a few trees and flowers, but most amazing of all was the fact that it was on a _cloud!_ I thought those spells had been lost centuries ago!*

I was impressed, though I have seen greater in my brilliant career; those days were now behind us. The magicians of today are mere gnats compared to the magicians that built the hanging gardens of Babylon.

There was another cloud floating in the distance and judging from the protective barriers and spells that surrounded it, an area of great importance.

I made a mental note to explore that later, I mean come on, if you go to a secret house in the clouds you might as well explore _all_ it secrets, right?

I was jolted out of my thoughts by a loud voice.

"We're here! You will spend the night in the guest house, be honored, you are the first ever guests!" Cinnamon pointed to a plain blue house. It had a very pretty garden.

Next to it was another three story house, it looked vaguely familiar, but as much as I tried I couldn't put a paw on it. I was the lion at this point; the snake had proved too troublesome. I deposited Kitty on the doorstep. She was still slack jawed with awe or some other human emotion.

Probably never walked on a cloud before, I rolled my eyes, _humans_.

Cinnamon ushered us into the house.

"Don't you dare go around wandering at night," she warned, "it is very cold and dark, you might fall straight off. I'm sure you wouldn't want to be a pancake."

Cinnamon took a threatening step toward me, as if she wanted to physically enforce that rule.

Naturally, I took a step back. "Geesh, don't bite my head off!"

Kitty stepped between us defensively*

"Bartimaeus! You still haven't told me how you survived! Do you KNOW what I WENT through! All those days I thought I had lost both of you forever!"

The death ray was on full force now.

"Miss?" Cinnamon interrupted

Kitty glared

Cinnamon gulped, "I'llbeoutsideifyouneedanythingjustcall!"

While she was saying that she had been slowly backing towards the door, upon completing her sentence, she turned and high tailed it out of the house.

Seeing that, I decided to do the same.

Quick as lightning, Kitty blocked the door.

"Bartimaeus," she said in the kind of voice that makes you go uh-oh "you still haven't told me how you survived."

"Ahhh _that_, it was nothing, I was just lucky." The lion hopped from one paw to the other in agitation.

"Don't you try to dodge my question!" Kitty practically screamed

I sighed, "The brat gave this ridiculous reason about why he couldn't trust me, _me_ I ask you! To do it right…"

Kitty was silent, drinking all this in, she waited for me to continue.

And waited…

And waited…

"And then?" she asked

"Theksdhgpogm"

"Well…?"

"The idiot pulled a Ptolemy on me, okay!" I shouted

"He pulled...?"

I felt a pang of some indescribable emotion, the little _idiot,_ how could he leave me with this mess!

I heard a rustling of fabric as Kitty sat down beside me

"Well? What do you plan to do now?"She asked

"Same thing as you, I guess, now that you are officially my assistant." trying to bring some cheer into the dreary conversation.

I drifted off, in deep thought, I don't know how Kitty managed it but she had missed two key points of our last conversation.

Point number one was that I said Lovelace had been killed but how could he have survived?

Point number two was that once we had the pearl, if we could ever get it, Lovelace would come after us and knowing his previous track record, we would be dead in record time.

As I mulled over this, another thought came to me. It was rash and dangerous and went against my five thousand years of common sense,* but I would have done anything to get Nathaniel off my mind.

"Hey, Kitty." I said startling her. "Let's go!"

Kitty furrowed her brow, "where?"

"Why, to break into that thing and take all its secrets! I thought your knack at stealing things might come in handy, and who knows? We might even find the Pearl!"

"It was for a good cause!" kitty said indignantly as she followed me out into the night.

*just a little accident back in the days of Rome. After they constructed Mount Olympics I had been charged to take the spells that compacted clouds to a safe place. On the way there I was attacked by a number of dijin, with the utmost speed and cunning I escaped their clutches. But with death hot on my heels I had to get rid of all the extra weight, namely by throwing, the box and all, into a large lake, where it was never found again. Let's just say my master wasn't too happy.

* Though I wasn't sure _who_ she was defending, Cinnamon or me, she was glaring at both of us.

* For your information, it was a whole lot and _I'm_ living proof of that.


	4. Chapter 4

Nathaniel

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Bartimaeus trilogy _

_Kitty stared at him; her aura was brighter than ever. He pushed himself away from the tree, tapped the Staff upon the ground. It flared into life. "See you later, Kitty," he said._

_She lowered the amulet around her neck and smiled. "See you. You too, Bartimaeus."_

"_Goodbye."_

A dull ringing in Nathaniel's ear, he stirred, not entirely wanting sleep to leave him.

A crash in the hallway, the door was flung open and hung creaking unceremoniously on its hinges. Nathaniel's head snapped up. Borello stood in the doorway, he rapped the door sheepishly, "Um…good morning? Sensor webs have been triggered, why are you always sleeping? Sorry about the door, I will fix it. Something has broken into the trap… again. "

Nathaniel shrugged, Borello's thoughts had gone in different directions there, since he became half dijin everything became so complicated, "Well, at least it keeps them away from the pearl, and I am not always sleeping, it is because _you_ are always awake, as for the door, it is the fifth time you have broken it, have you ever heard of _knocking?_"

Borello shifted under his gaze, "I did knock, you know, after. Sorry, boss." He winced as he realized the slip of the tongue.

Nathaniel glared, "Don't call me that! As I recall, _I _was summoned to assist _you."_

It was a known fact that he had been summoned to assist Borello, because the magician found Borello "incompetent". However, it did not mean Nathaniel was happy about it, after all, it had been his first ever summoning, the magician was well versed in the summons and it had gone without a hitch…which was endlessly annoying.

Borello sighed, "I thought we had gotten over that…old habits die hard, back to business, we should really check on the visitors. They probably aren't very happy, caught in the trap as they are." Nathaniel groaned and heaved himself out of bed.

He let his body relax and fall limp. Nathaniel concentrated and gently eased out of his body while it shifted, always; it caused a rush of familiar warmth to go through him. Then, just as quickly, it was gone, and he was left standing, but as a small, sky blue dragon with delicate wings folded neatly on its back. He dashed down three flights of stairs and nearly crashed into Jinxlopel.

"Wow, that didn't take long." Jinxlopel idly commented, "I never liked the looks of that dijin." Nathaniel sleepily fumbled with the doorknob, he threw the door open and was hit with a blast of cold air. Heaving a groan, he flapped his wings and launched into the air, followed closely by Borello and Jinxlopel.

The trap cloud, normally so peaceful, was now surround by a shimmering shield in which bolts of lightning occasionally crackled. Nathaniel landed on the edge of cloud, careful of the boundary lines; he did not want to get accidentally trapped.

"Well, well, look what we have here," Jinxlopel smirked, "did you not heed my warning?"

"Dude, it's like three in the morning!" Borello complained.

Nathaniel glanced at the captives and nearly fell off the edge in shock.

He blinked, certain it was a mirage. There glaring at him was kitty Jones.

His mind reeled, _it was impossible!,_ _Borello had told him, assured him that one hundred years had passed since he had last been here, and he had stupidly believed him, no, he had wanted to believe it. How could he have been so gullible? He knew the reason, he was half demon now, a hybrid, he was afraid of what she would think. He had been half relieved that so much time had passed; it had meant he didn't have to face her. But now…. _

He shuddered, _what would Kitty think of him? Then immediately felt disgusted at himself, how could he think that she was dead? Not only had he thought it, he had almost wished it. He hadn't even tired to prove Borello wrong, hadn't even tried to find Kitty. Shame flooded him._

_What a fine mess I have gotten myself in._

_Wait, I didn't think that!_

Nathaniel looked up, straight into the amber eyes of the winged lion,

_Bartimaeus?_ He though cautiously

He saw the lion's eyes widen a fraction.

_Nathaniel?_

_It is you right?_

_Say hello to kitty for me? Nathaniel thought warily_

He sensed the other's shock and disbelief

_Please don't tell kitty_

_Tell her what?...oh_

_But that means I can't tell her you are alive either._

…_. Just don't tell her yet, okay?_

_You made her __**cry**__, you know_

_Cut me some slack, will you! I just found out you were alive three seconds ago!_

_Wow, you were indignant, sheepish, sad and angry at the same time, what a feat! _

_How did you manage to think that we were dead?_

_Bor-komodo told me that a hundred years had passed_

_And you believed him?_

_I….._

_Sigh…..isn't this irony, the master becomes the slave, you know, that sort of thing._

_Just don't tell her yet!_

_Fine_

_Come__** on**__…wait…what?_

_Fine, just don't make it too long a wait okay? I have had my fill of crying girls_

…_I suppose I…thanks_

_Now that I can read your thoughts, I can't help but feel a bit sorry for you._

_WHAT! DON'T YOU DARE!_

_Geesh, I was kidding, you should know that, you can read my thoughts._

_Right, I was joking too_

_Was that sarcasm?_

_You should know that, you can read my thoughts_

_I forgot how annoying you can be_

_Me, annoying? Look who's talking!_

_Just…try not to go __**kaboom**__ on me again okay? That was way to Ptolemy for my tastes_

_Bartimaeus, being sentimental! I never thought I'd live to see the day!*_

"**Hello**, earth to dragon, you awake?"

Nathaniel startled, "what?"

"You stared into space and your eyes glazed over," Borello pointed out

"Oh," Nathaniel said, "what did you say?"

"What do you want to do with them?" Borello repeated.

"Well…let's listen to their story first before we judge"

*Both figuratively and literally.

**Authors note**: **review!** If I get more reviews I will publish chapters faster! This took forever!


	5. Chapter 5

Kitty

Cinnamon looked at her questioningly.

Kitty swallowed, she had to make a good impression.

"Well…you see…I don't really need the pearl..." _she mentally face palmed_

"I am trying to prevent a magician called Simon Lovelace from using the pearl to take over London. I had a chat with the government officials and we thought it would be best to move the pearl to the treasury so it will be protected since Lovelace knows that the pearl is here."

Cinnamon scoffed, "and you don't think we are capable of fending off a _single_ man?"

Kitty looked at Bartimaeus for back up but he was staring into space, probably didn't even hear her conversation. It looked like she was going to have to single handedly do this, whatever this was. A tiny voice at the back of her head hollered _I don't need his help anyways!_

"Look, I don't think you know what Lovelace is capable of, years back, he tried to take over the government and summoned Ramuthra!"

"Obliviously however he didn't succeed." Cinnamon pointed out.

"Stop giving the young lady a hard time." Another spirit butted in. This one was wearing the guise of a lizard that stood on two legs. It seemed slightly nicer.

"Humph, it is my job to make sure that they work for it!" Cinnamon said in an annoyed voice.

The other sprit, a blue dragon, was staring at her intensely, as if looking into her soul. Kitty glared defiantly back, she had worked so hard for the equality and peace the current government was starting to bring and if Lovelace attained the pearl, years of hard work would be for nothing, well, she was not going to let him, not over her dead body! After a moment of intense eye contact, the dragon looked away. There was something about its eyes that was strikingly similar to…no! he was dead…she had to learn to let go.

The lizard, jackal and dragon began discussing, periodically casting her weird glances.

After what seemed like infinity, they broke apart and the lizard stepped forward, "we've decided to let you take the pearl," Kitty's heart leaped. "But on two conditions, do not take it to the treasury…" "And two, you will be under intense surveillance!" Cinnamon grinned evilly.

At this Bartimaeus snapped out of his trance, "whoa! Surveillance?"

"You want the pearl, yes? Then too bad, your opinion doesn't matter." Cinnamon snapped irritably.

Bartimaeus ground his teeth.

"Wait here, I'll go get it." The lizard interrupted.

Giant bat wings unfolded, flapped once, the reptile launched into the air.

Cinnamon turned with an expression of utter distaste, "it seems…" she said slowly, "we are going to have to tolerate each other for a while, huh?"

"yes." Agreed Bartimaeus

"Truce?"

"For now." Bartimaeus said with a sly smile.

Kitty cleared her throat, opened her mouth to speak, only to find that Bartimaeus was shaking his head. "We all know you don't do speeches, Kitty."

"Kitty? What a nice name." Cinnamon muttered.

"Pant…I, Komodo, am… back!" The lizard announced.

The sprit held a circular object the size of a basketball, wrapped in a delicate silk cloth. It emitted a gentle, warm, luminous light. Komodo gently unwrapped it, revealing a…

Kitty gasped in wonder. The pearl shone with a dozen soft colors blending and swirling in a dozen intricate patterns. It bathed her face in a warm glowing; it seemed the pearl contained a part of the other place. Bartimaeus gave a sigh, "I miss the other place already."

Mesmerized, Kitty reached out, even from far away the power of such a small object was obvious, her fingers grazed it, suddenly a tendril of something reached out for her hand. Startled she drew back. "Careful, it sucks the life out of anything human." Komodo explained.

Bartimaeus took it, placed a concealment over it and put it in her bag, which he slung over one shoulder. No word was needed, as one Kitty climbed onto the lion's back and they flew down, through the clouds, Kitty's hair trailing behind her, whipping madly. With a thud, they landed next to the hollow tree. Cinnamon scampered in and took out the box; she opened it and quickly threw the amulet in Kitty's general direction. "We will be watching you." She said.

Kitty put the amulet around her neck, and turned to look at Cinnamon but she and the other sprits had disappeared.

Bartimaeus nudged her, she looked up, the sight took her breath away, the sun was rising, her eyes filled with tears, her vision blurred, the last time she had seem the sun rise, standing in the ruins of the glass palace, the sun was rising and cast odd shadows, the glass sparkled all the colors of the rainbow but Kitty felt empty. Now she was filled with new purpose, she would see this to the end, she had to, this would be a welcome distraction.

For the first time in a long while, Kitty wondered about the future.

**Authors note: As always, review!**


	6. Chapter 6

Bartimaeus

I have to say, the brat's appearance shocked me.*

It _really _shocked me.

So much that I didn't respond with my witty comebacks. Instead I got a bit sappy.*

The latter of which rendered me speechless, for the time being ofcourse.*

There was also the concerning matter of Nat's condition, last time I checked, he wasn't a dragon. Unless he was a spirit all along it must have happened sometime between the glass palace incident and now. Which still left a huge one month gap, also, and here was the concerning bit, his aura was irregular, one moment it was normal and the next it was rocketing off the charts. I needed to get to the bottom of this, since he did not want me to tell Kitty yet it either meant something was seriously wrong or he was being his normal self*…

_Hey!_

And he interrupted my train of thought…again

_It's not like I want to listen to you, no one can stand you for long periods of time_

_It is called intelligence_

_And I am Gladstone_

_No one asked you_

_So you were talking to yourself?_

_Are you saying I am mentally ill?_

_(Silence)_

_Hello?_

It appears he can't hear me, is there a range on this thing?

Hmmmm appears to be.

Well that is nice

"Bartimaeus, you are out of it again." Kitty groaned

"Oh, I was? Sorry."

"I wanted to know where we are going to hide this thing." Kitty asked, "Hopefully somewhere in London?"

"We'll think of a place on the fly back, how is Piper going to take this?"

Kitty snorted, "it is not like their treasure room is secure or anything, I mean Nathaniel got the staff just fine…"

"But he's dead! And I don't know what to do, everybody with those false smiles and stupid flowers, I just can't TAKE it anymore!" Kitty suddenly bursted out.

A few people gave us weird looks.

"Yeah Kitty…about that…"

"What?"

"Nothing"*

"Bartimaeus, you are worrying me, you are not yourself today, what is wrong?"

Quickly I thought up a passable lie, "Doesn't it worry you that they gave it to us so easily, almost like they are testing us, no wonder they are following us."

"I wouldn't be surprised." Kitty muttered sarcastically.

Our footsteps rung loudly on the cobbled streets.

I checked the planes…nothing

"They aren't following…for now."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about your useful abilities, thanks."

"I wonder how you ever got along without me." I grinned

Kitty rolled her eyes.

We hailed a cab and drove to the airport.

"I'm going to have to dismiss you now since we are going through customs." Kitty said apologetically.

"See you, then."

She began the dismissal; it was well practiced but didn't have the same flourish I was used to.

Curse that brat. And he wasn't even dead!

I felt the ties to this world give away

Back in the comforting dancing lights of the other place, distant memories flashed, Ptolemy's smile, a crowded spice market, a girl twirling a sliver knife, _Asmira_, a certain ring…

Soon the memories blurred until I stopped remembering, that's what the other place does to you, it is less about doing and more about being.

After a time, I was beginning to feel slightly bored, my essence didn't need much healing, one month in the Other place had brought me back to full strength. Almost. Yeah right.

Then I felt a faint tug, it quickly grew into a pull that sucked me up with the force of a tornado, I hurtled through the four elemental walls and landed in a small guest room somewhere in London. The sky was the color of a grandmother's sockings, gray.* Wonderful.

I turned into Ptolemy.

"Just how long were you on that plane? I was wondering if you had died!" I snarked, my tone portraying how impatient I was.

Kitty shook her head, "so _sorry_, I didn't know you didn't want to be in the Other place, since you _complain and whine_ all day long about missing it.

Time for a topic changer, "so where are we going to hide the pearl?"

Kitty thought a while, and shrugged, "Somewhere Lovelace doesn't expect."

I rolled my eyes, "So much for not stating the obvious."

Kitty's eyes lit up, "How about under his very nose?"

I considered it, "You know, that is not bad, but we don't exactly know where he is or more importantly, where his nose is."

"We might not know, but I have an idea of where he should be." Kitty said

"Lead the way then, but we have to be careful."

"Yeah, yeah." Kitty was already halfway down the road.

"Geesh, young people these days, have no respect for their elders." I muttered under my breath. Even so I followed her.

Only took us a few back alleyways… actually, make that a couple hundred.

"Oh, quit your whining!" Kitty half groaned.

"If anyone saw me I am going to die of shame!" I growled

…

…

"Why does it have to be _here_!? Of all the places you could have chosen…"

"I don't like it either but if you are looking for a place people tend to avoid and not be too nosy about… what better place than here?"

"You do have a point." I said grudgingly. "But we are going to break the _no people here _rule."

Kitty looked back at me, in her eyes a flame burned, "Do I look like I care?"

"Rather not."

Kitty spun around and took a step

Into the ruins of the glass palace.

*let me put this in perspective, for example, if your pet goldfish your sweet grandma passed away and then miraculously dropped in to say hi, that would be a shock, wouldn't it? Okay, maybe grandma wasn't the right way to describe it but you get the general idea

*to my eternal shame, also, knowing Nat, he would never let me live it down.

*the last time I had been speechless, Kitty had summoned me. My, was that ever a shock.

*for future reference, his "normal self" is a real prat

*I wanted to tell her right there and then but if Nathaniel didn't want me to, he must have had his reasons, and until I find out, I will just have to keep my mouth shut. Which is hard!

*in some cultures, gray socks were a religious thing


	7. Chapter 7

Nathaniel

Nathaniel stared gloomily at the book, _portals to the world. _How on earth was he going to cast this without a person to help him on the other side? He wondered. Then his mind wandered to other concerns.

Maybe Kitty is lying, maybe Lovelace really is dead. But if Lovelace is alive, he had just given Kitty a ticking time bomb; he really should have thought this out more. He hoped the case of cross mind reading wasn't permanent. Sighing, he unconsciously ran a hand through his hair. Nathaniel flipped a page, not that he needed to, he had already memorized the whole thing when he was fourteen. Along with all seven other books by this author. _You made her cry you know,_ ugh it was impossible to think with pieces of his earlier conversation with Bartimaeus drifting in his mind. Nathaniel then tried to banish all thought of Bartimaeus from his mind.

_You know it is not Bartimaeus that is bothering you. _Said a voice that sounded disturbingly similar to Bartimaeus'.

_It's Kitty. _

_Oh shut up he told himself…the portal also could work if there is an object of importance at the place where the user is going! Which means he could make a portal to London, so he can keep an eye on the pearl…or he could also keep an eye on Kitty. Nathaniel had to admit, the latter sounded more appealing. Time to see if the library is still intact, if the library counts as an object that is. Here goes nothing…_

_Nathaniel began the spell…_

_A few hours later…_

"So, not too shabby huh?"Borello said

Nathaniel rolled his eyes, "it was the best I could do under the current circumstances."

"I swear, the thing is going to collapse any second now." Cinnamon complained loudly.

"First things first, "Said Nathaniel with a sense of authority. "Let's search and find them before they get into trouble."

He started to shift into a dragon

Cinnamon's head snapped around, "What do you think you are doing, you are most definitely not going as a dragon THAT EVERY ONE WILL SEE!"

Nathaniel startled, "I..."

"Let me guess, you are new aren't you?" Cinnamon groaned

Nathaniel inwardly wished he had practiced changing into different forms when he had the chance. "…might be"

"Well I am only going to say this once so listen carefully, you imagine the creature you want to be, and make it a sparrow for neatness sake, and you imagine your essence changing into it, like this…" With that she shifted into a crow

"You make it look so easy." Nathaniel huffed, it was not that he couldn't change, given time yes, but just not when rushed. He focused hard, he first stretched out one wing then molded the other, then a beak, tail…after only minutes he was done.

"Congrats, now hurry up" Cinnamon snapped, then flapped out the broken window.

"Wait!" Nathaniel panicky squawked, gliding was one thing but flying was another altogether!

Borello frowned, "I'll help"

Nathaniel did not argue. He figured this was better than jumping out the window.

Anyone walking down the London streets at noon would have seen a strange sight had they raised their heads. A pigeon carrying a sparrow with a crow trailing behind. Any normal person would have thought that the pigeon wasn't what it seemed, which ruined the original purpose entirely.

After an entire day of searching, they landed dejectedly in a back alley. Nathaniel changed back into himself. "This is hopeless, I _knew_ we shouldn't have given it to them, but did you listen? Noooo, you just had to, _oh no, Lovelace is dangerous!_ Humph!" Cinnamon muttered angrily.

"Why did you listen to her anyway?" Borello asked curiously

"I don't know, she just seemed so reasonable and…"Nathaniel defended

"Reasonable, HER?! Her dijin threatened me!" Cinnamon shrieked furiously

"Yikes!" Borello winked at Nathaniel, "Wouldn't want to mess with her!"

He then yelped as a red spasm nearly grazed him.

"Say that again and the next one will meet your face!" The jackal growled, fingers smoking.

"Kay, Kay you win." Borello rolled his eyes

Nathaniel scowled, he wasn't getting anywhere with this! Kitty was out there somewhere and so was Lovelace, no doubt he knew that they had left Prague by now. If he ever found out Kitty had it… He shuddered. _What if Lovelace already found her? Killed her? _Nathaniel resisted the urge to start pacing, it would not help anyway.

A noise alerted him. A tiny sound, like a rock being kicked.

Nathaniel's eyes narrowed.

He took a look around. The alley smelled of dew and dust. The buildings on either side were cracked and aged, spirals of dense greenery covered the sides. They cast shadows on the pavement. He heard Borello's idle chatter. Maybe he was just jumpy? Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Perhaps he was tried? Impossible! He knew he had heard something.

Lovelace was making him paranoid. Nathaniel nervously ran a hand though his hair. His eyes darted around the alley. He felt trapped, his heartbeat started to speed up.

He tilted his head, strained his ears and tried to block out Borello.

A scraping noise. Perhaps from someone's shoe?

There! Behind the boxes half outside the alleyway.

Nathaniel took a cautious step forward.

A stray cat? Maybe an imp?

"…and can you believe this weather?" Cinnamon moaned

Another step.

"…way back in the good old days, when afrits were king…"

Nathaniel silently crept closer.

He ran his eyes along the boxes. Discarded no doubt. Then what..?

He peeked around the corner of the building.

Straight into a pair of familiar eyes. Nathaniel froze.

**AUTHORS NOTE: Helllooo, echo, echo... i feel like i am the only one on this...would some people post more stories and review? i know people read this story but only two people(Thank you) have reviewed. it would make me really happy. **


	8. Chapter 8

Kitty

After hiding the pearl, Kitty trudged half heartedly towards home.

Home and where was that exactly? Piper was not going to be pleased; she would demand that they leave things to the government. Kitty wondered when she would actually stop hiding and lurking and…

"So, WHERE are we going milady?" Bartimaeus grouched

Kitty blinked uncertainly. There was no way they could go back to the apartment now…

"Somewhere…" She answered vaguely.

Kitty swung around and began walking determinedly in the other direction.

They wandered haphazardly through the streets, winding their way around back alleyways and long abandoned buildings.

She heard some people talking.

"Why did you listen to her anyway?"

"I don't know… she just seemed so reasonable…"

Wait… that was Nathaniel's voice.

Kitty shook her head violently, he was dead! When was she going to come to terms with that!

"…stupid brat."Bartimaeus muttered

Still…

She should just check, maybe just once.

Kitty broke into a run.

Bartimaeus whirled around alarmed, "Kitty?"

She navigated her way past some old buildings, the voices were coming from behind those boxes in that skinny alley with the brick walls.

Kitty crept around the boxes, she spied Komodo and Cinnamon arguing.

There was a person standing to the side, he turned scowling and glanced her way.

Kitty gasped, startled and nudged a pebble lying amid the broken window planes.

_Tink_

Kitty ducked behind the boxes. Nathaniel! She was sure of it! Suddenly she felt a surge of anger, how dare he! Nathaniel was alive and he didn't tell her?!

She would be no match for Komodo and Cinnamon, if she barged in there now…

Kitty needed a plan. If she somehow got him to come her way, she could knock him out and ask questions later. She glanced around, now… what would she use…, Kitty saw a wooden pole and picked it up. Gripping it with both hands, she stole around the cardboard boxes.

Kitty made a scraping noise with her foot. Nathaniel jumped; he narrowed his eyes and began to move closer.

Kitty readied herself.

Nathaniel crept around the boxes.

And froze in shock. Kitty met his bewildered eyes.

She felt an odd fluttering, Kitty hesitated.

Then a tidal wave of emotions broke forth, a month of pent up denial, anger, sadness and frustration exploded outward. Her eyes flared and she swung the pole back…

"Kitty! What are you doing! Running off like that!" Bartimaeus rounded the corner, just in time to see her swing the pole with all her might at Nathaniel's head.

With a sickening crack the pole broke in two, and Nathaniel crumpled in a heap.

Kitty glared at Bartimaeus with murder in her eyes.

Ptolemy's mouth was permanently set in an "oh"

Suddenly, realization struck her.

"You _knew_…you **knew** he was alive and you didn't tell me!?" Kitty screamed

"Now, now let's not be so hasty." Said Bartimaeus nervously.

"Don't you think that _I of all the people_ deserved to know!?" She demanded

"How long?" said Kitty, her voice dangerously quiet.

Bartimaeus made an undignified squeaking noise.

"HOW LONG!" Kitty took a threatening step forward.

"Look, I just found out a day ago! And he specifically asked me not to tell you! It is not my fault, why are you looking at me like I was the cause of all your troubles?" Bartimaeus rambled.

"What! ...He will be lucky I don't murder him" Kitty growled, she gestured to Bartimaeus for him to pick Nathaniel up. For once he did it without complaint.

Suddenly, a denotation whisked by an inch from Kitty's face.

A wall behind her exploded, peppering Kitty with debris.

"What do you think you are doing?" Cinnamon demanded

Kitty swore, "Bartimaeus! Follow me and run!"

The dijin turned and rapidly fired three blue-green spasms.

A window shattered, sprinkling glass all over the jackal.

The other two spasms struck the ground at irregular angles, upheaving chunks of pavement and dirt. Smoke clogged the air. By the time Cinnamon and Komodo came to their senses, the dijin and the girl were long gone.

"Where are we going?" Bartimaeus asked for the hundredth time.

"WE are going to THIS LYING, TREACHEROUS MAGICAIN'S house!" Kitty yelled, her bad mood from earlier had still not worn off.

"No need to be so dramatic, Geesh!" Bartimaeus muttered. He was in the form of a large, unhappy gargoyle.

"Don't think you're off the hook so easily." Kitty called, sprinting ahead.

She arrived in the square. It was shaded by tall beech trees with an open green in the center. The Georgian homes had been empty since the Glass Palace incident and now lay unused. Mostly because the government didn't want to spend time dueling on such insignificant matters with what the rebellious people protesting in the streets, the increasing amount of riots and the hospital fees that were piling up because of the hundreds among thousands of injured.

A lavish cream-colored house with fake pillars and buxom caryatids lay on the south side.

To the northwest lay an epic money pile/fashion statement with a golden dome to boot.

Kitty wrinkled her nose and sighed.

Behind her, Bartimaeus snickered. "Go on, which one is it?"

Kitty's mouth turned into a grimace.

"I bet you'll never guess!" Bartimaeus grinned evilly.

"Enlighten me." Kitty deadpanned.

The gargoyle snorted, "Oh come on, you are no fun."

He lifted one stony hand and pointed to a slender four story building painted buttercup yellow. Kitty hadn't even noticed it due to the two tremendous eyesores sandwiching it on either side.

"Look upon thy building and be enlightened!" Bartimaeus boasted in a shrill voice, "Painted the most ridiculous shad of yellow, with equally impressive windows and marble steps is my humble abode!" He then gestured wildly, "The shutters are magnificent!"

Bartimaeus doubled over in laughter

Kitty snorted, a grin worming its way up her face.

After a while, they stood on the doorstep.

"Alright!" said Kitty, "Let's go in!"

"Um…Kitty,"

"Yes?"

"There is a slight problem."

"What!" Kitty snapped.

"We don't have the key."

"…"

"…"

"Turn into a fly, sneak in and open the door."

"Well if Nathaniel's house is that easy to get into he'll be dead already."

Kitty groaned and buried her head in her hands.

"Are you saying that we came all this way and we don't have the KEY?!"

"Yes."

"Well think of a way! Anything will do!" Kitty said, exasperated.

"I have a plan, but that will require your cooperation." Bartimaeus said finally.

"Of course you have my cooperation! Who wants to stand here in the cold?" Kitty barked, her patience snapping.

"We could wait for Nathaniel to wake up, I think he hid a spare pair around here, but that would mean you not strangling him on sight."

Kitty growled, "But afterwards I am going to KILL him."

"Yes"

"FINE. I will _try_. Emphasis on _try."_

"I fear for his life" The gargoyle sat down on the marble steps. Bartimaeus dumped Nathaniel on the walkway and stared gloomily at the sky.

Kitty huffed and sat down beside him. "However, I never said anything about not killing you."

She grinned nastily. "Start apologizing."

Bartimaeus cast his eyes forlornly on Nathaniel's unconscious form, "Look what you got me into this time!"


	9. Chapter 9

now undergoing editing, endlessstars had spotted a problem, i think that i should fix, i noticed too but didn't dwell too much on. Thanks! Also reviews are appreciated

Bartimaeus

I had to give it to Kitty, she really knows how to express her emotions. That is well and fine but I would have liked it better had chosen to actually talk to the culprit of this mess instead of hammering what she thought of this into _my_ brain. Speaking of which, the little idiot seems to be waking up.

Nathaniel pushed himself up into a sitting position and glanced around muddledly.

"Owww…" he groaned.

I decided I should give him a fair warning before he gets run over by Kitty.

"Say…Natty boy," I said quite calmly.

He blinked, glanced at me, his brow furrowed in confusion.

Typical magician, always slow to comprehend the situation. I should speed up the process, Kitty was currently keeping her word but I could _sense_ the air beside me vibrating in anger.

"Being the paranoid magician you are, I know you kept a spare pair of house keys around here somewhere…"

Kitty stood up.

Ah, here it comes; I knew it wouldn't last long.

"Nathaniel, would you care to explain where the hell have you been before I beat the crap out of you or should I do that and ask questions later?!"

Nathaniel froze stock still, poor thing, he hesitated one second too long.

Kitty promptly stepped forward and slapped him.

The magician gave an undignified yelp.*

Kitty scowled, "Don't be such a sissy, you deserve worse. I came this close to strangling you on sight but I thought it would be better if I did that away from Cinnamon or else she might think I was attacking you and demand the pearl back. You have a lot of explaining to do."

Great, so instead she yelled and screamed at me like crazy. Though it might have been my fault but never would I admit that. Glad to know how much she cared.*

"Nathaniel," I murmured, "Go get the keys already."

"I know." He muttered, then got up and stumbled off in a dazed manner.

I looked at Kitty thoughtfully, "You seem to be feeling better, I gotta try that one. Be careful though, I think you scarred that kid for life."

She gave a snort, "Impossible, he was already scarred for life. By you."

"Ha ha." Inwardly, I felt quite smug.

I, Bartimaeus of Urk, has finally proven how great I truly am. How nice to be appreciated.

I watched Nathaniel come back with a pair of keys; one was a gold color and the other silver.

He climbed up the stairs and inserted the first one into the keyhole and muttered something. Then inserted the other into the bottom keyhole and turned. There was a clicking sound. He pushed and the door swung inward. I followed him in, it had been a while, the air had that stale quality that comes from being cooped up too long. Same as us, we get weaker as time passes, hmm whose fault was _that_ I wonder. Nathaniel wrinkled his nose and coughed. Kitty closed the door behind us and locked it. I was still pondering why Nathaniel's aura appeared irregular and didn't notice when he stopped. I almost bumped into him.*

"Kitty…" His voice came out a bit high.

I could hear his mind racing, trying to think of solutions to problems I didn't know existed. Then he realized I was probably listening in and slammed the door in my face. Quite rudely too, think of it like a mind block spell, but only virtually. Already cracks were showing. Can't keep me out for long.

"Kitty," Nathaniel tried again*, "Um, the guest room is on the 2nd floor, bathrooms are located…"

Here I tuned out. I understood him blearily enough to know he was nervous and had started babbling. Humans, prone to things called feelings, morals blah blah blah…all very sweet and innocent.

"Yes, but I would like to know what happened." The girl said.

I leaned in closer, by this time; I had been standing to the side for quite a while. Not that I was very keen on the magic lecture that was sure to follow but I needed to know.

"So," Nathaniel began, "I will be brief and succinct, when the staff broke, the spirits residing in it were dismissed, thus when they traveled back to the Other place they created a vortex that temporarily sucked things in, much like with Ramuthra, so I was caught up in the whirlpool and sucked into the other place while the energy shockwaves destroyed the Glass palace. I was unconscious by that time so I didn't know what happened next but presumably the Other place saved my life and healed me or something because the next thing I knew I was being summoned and then I woke up . And yeah. I could tell you all the details once I do a bit of research on the topic in my library, such as if there are any other recorded cases of such an event." He finished and looked at Kitty nervously.

"Uh-huh, all I heard was blah blah magical magician nonsense." Kitty stated bluntly.

Nathaniel opened his mouth to protest but thought better of it.

"So in other words?" She prompted.

"I am a hybrid now." He said quietly.

Kitty blinked in shock, I could see her putting the pieces together.

"Ok, and?" She said.

Ahh, I love this, the expression on Nat's face.

"But…you are not scared? Or disgusted? Or angry? Don't you hate me?" He asked incredulously.

"Um, no, I think that is just you." I interjected.

The magician shot me a bewildered look. It was the way he was raised no doubt, they are all taught the same things, demons are bad, disgusting, the same trash they feed the commoners. The whole hybrid thing didn't help much. Probally even being with us was going against his very nature, didn't seem to bother Kitty though.

Kitty gave a little laugh, making Nathaniel jump slightly.

"Like I care, seriously, do you really think it makes any difference? Angry yes but I'm here for a reason. I became friends with you and Bartimaeus didn't I? "

Great, now she is bringing that up.

"Yah, but…"

"But nothing, I don't care _what_ you are. You are still you, and acting like it too." Kitty snickered and walked off.

I glanced at the magician, who was standing dumbfounded with his mouth hanging open.

"What was the last part supposed to mean?" Nathaniel questioned.

"I think she let you off easy." I muttered.

"Are you kidding me? I have barely been in her presence for an hour and I have a bruise on my head the size of Prague _and_ she slapped me!"

"Listen to yourself, you sound like a whiny three year old."

"Will you stop? I have stuff to do. I need to research the history of hybrids and what the pearl does." He turned and stomped off, leaving me behind.

*Can't say I didn't enjoy that, sure I have heard about it, but this was the first time I had seen it in person. Made me feel _much_ better, that did. You have no idea how many times I had wanted to do that.

*Not sure how that was different from shouting at Nathaniel but hey, you never know what goes on inside a human's brain…Actually, I do but I will not dwell on that. Ugh.

*almost, 5000 years of experience prevented me

* I applaud him for his effort, really


	10. Chapter 10

Authors note: Hey, in this I explain a bit about the pearl and smoothen up some parts. I know I said I was going to edit but I'll do that after the New Year. Review and on with the story!

Nathaniel

Nathaniel spent the rest of the day cooped up in the library studying and updating himself on the state of affairs in Britain. _Funny, there is little mention of me in the newspapers now, _he mused, _since no one actually saw me blow up Nouda, some people don't even believe that is what happened, there is a theory circulating around that they fabricated the story about the staff and used me as the hero since I was already dead blah blah blah…Nouda ate too many people and blew up, taking the glass palace with him. The rest of the government cowered behind their demons._ Nathaniel gave a sigh, why was it that when he had really done something noteworthy… people slander it so? Surely the eyewitness' accounts were similar enough to piece the truth together. Oh well, the people were far to obsessed with their commoner uprising that they created a whirlpool that sucked anything that had to do with the government down into the depths of deplorable behavior. Not that he cared; he had more pressing matters at hand. Lovelace, unfortunately, had sparked an old almost forgotten emotion that fit snugly into the category known as hate. Nathaniel frowned, this was not good, he could not afford to act rashly, the enemy was clever and powerful. He would have to step very carefully indeed. Lovelace almost certainly possessed aid from others and if Nathaniel was not diligent enough, the enemy could simple overwhelm him with sheer numbers. The pearl also presented a problem, why would Lovelace need such a heavily protected item; even he did not know how to operate it. Nathaniel had inquired about the use of the pearl; Jinxlopel AKA Cinnamon simply regarded him with a confused expression and gave him the vaguest answer, something about absolute control. The magician scowled inwardly, he was getting nowhere with this!

As he pondered, he skimmed a book with light fingers, _Screeching violin…enchanted well…pearl of SkyWest…pearl of sunset…pearl of Control-__**Dragon's pearl, **_Nathaniel almost jumped with excitement, yes! He had found it! It read:_ The dragon's pearl falls into the rare and dangerous __**pearls of control**__ category. Its main purpose is to gain absolute control over those in its power, so much that it controls their mind. In order to achieve this, the pearl needs tremendous amounts of energy, which it obtains by devouring living organisms, most notability __**humans**__. Magicians are advised to keep well away from this pearl. Note that it cannot be destroyed because destroying it would create a vortex that would devastate entire cities. The most significant use of this pearl would be the fact that it can summon spirits, using a lot of fuel but nevertheless, without pentacles and the normal procedures to simply enslave them in both essence and mind, basically total control. It is not very spoken of because it has simply been guarded by a lineage of men who mysteriously hide it for fear of it being used for evil purposes and because it is very thought after item. Rarely has anyone ever laid eyes on it._

A cold shiver of dread ran up his spine, devouring **humans,** that was not good, Lovelace no doubt had a ready supply of people prepared before hand, there was not much Nathaniel could do currently except sit and wait for Lovelace's next move. However, luck had been on his side so far and Lovelace had not caught wind of his survival. He hoped it would stay this way at least until he has a grasp on the current crisis.

The door creaked open; Bartimaeus swaggered in and leaned causally against a shelf full of ancient materials. "So…"He said, "How is the research coming along?"

Nathaniel slouched, "Nothing much, just a little bit on man-eating, hypnotizing pearls."

Bartimaeus whistled, "Sounds rough, need a hand, paw or talon?"

By this time, Nathaniel, well and truly annoyed, looked up only to hastily glance down again.

The exasperating dijin had apparently decided to take the guise of a grotesque creature with hands and all manner of accessories sticking out of random places.

"Get away from my books, you will get slime all over the spines." Nathaniel growled angrily.

"Don't work yourself up, I ain't touching nothing."

"Why did you have to choose _today_ of all the days to try out your new wardrobe?"

"Hey, today's a big ocansion, you came back and kitty got ala of sters ankaj taij."

"Careful there, ewww what _is that_, it's making your speech incoherent."

"It's a trunk, if you don't understand fashion then don't say anything at all."

Nathaniel curled his lip as a particularly unappetizing smell wafted under his nose. He shut his book with finality. "You must really want London's downfall, if you keep distracting me like this I'll never get anything done right."

The spirit snorted or tried to, which in his state elicited a slurping nose. "Don't try to blame _your _shortcomings on me buddy, you've got a bunch and I don't want 'em."

Nathaniel grinned, _finally,_ "I am barely back ten minutes and insults already."

_I can hear your thoughts you know_

_That's intruding!_

_Hmmm…what's this bit here…_

_Hey! No! stop that!_

_Blah, human trash_

_That is my knowledge you are talking about! At this rate you might damage something._

_Don't worry about that, everything is already nice and damaged_

_Shut up_

_That's some nice sanity you possess there… I'll be taking that._

_Ha-ha, get OUT._

"Geesh, don't spaz out, you are making my head hurt." An eye rotated and fixed Nathaniel with a baleful stare.

"I can't even begin to describe the horrors I have been forced to witness…" Nathaniel muttered, he stood up and strode determinedly out of his library.

Bartimaeus trailed behind him, feet making a wet squishing noise as he oozed along.

Nathaniel proceeded to the kitchen where he eyed the refrigerator with a doubtful expression.

"I checked, everything has gone stale." Bartimaeus stated behind him, back in Ptolemy's form.

"Do you need to eat?" he added, almost as an afterthought.

"YES, I DO need to Eat because I am a HYBRID, I am still half human!"

At this moment, Kitty stormed down the stairs and flew out the front door.

"I'll be back!" She called as she ran.

…Leaving the two shocked participants staring after her in complete confusion.

Nathaniel blinked, "She forgot the keys."


	11. Chapter 11

Kitty

Half-heartedly, Kitty looked out the window and stared at the sky, Hybrid huh, that was the only reason he'd been avoiding her. She felt like punching something, what if she hadn't gone to Prague? Would she then have had to think he was dead forever? That slimy magician, how inconsiderate, she had been nearly torn apart by grief and guilt! _Still, it must be hard, _the reasonable side of her mind chided, _to wake up only to find you are a hybrid, one of those that slaughtered hundreds of people. _Kitty groaned, this was giving her a migraine, she wished all the problems could go away and find someone else to bother. _Why couldn't anything be perfect? _

Ring…ring!

She was jerked out of her sour mood by her vibrating phone. Grimacing, she answered.

Immediately, she was bombarded with noise. "KITTY!" The phone wailed, "COME TO THE SUBWAY STATION PLEASE! IT'S JACOB! PLEASE! I NEED YOUR HELP!" then the line went dead.

"Jacob? Hello?" Kitty shouted, immediately jumping to the worst possible conclusion.

No answer.

With a sick feeling settling at in the pit of her stomach, Kitty lurched out of the guest room and sprinted down the stairs. _Please no! Please not Jacob, don't let him be hurt…_

She blew by Nathaniel and Bartimaeus, quickly shouted, "Be right back!" And dashed out onto the street. Panting, she rounded a corner and dashed out of the magician's sector. Barely stopping to ask directions from a stranger, she eventually stumbled to the station.

"Jacob?" She yelled, not caring if others heard, "Jacob!"

While scanning the area, Kitty saw him pacing to her left , she almost tripped over herself in her effort to get there.

"Are you alright? What happened? Why are you in London?" Kitty panted

Jacob looked at her with a panicked expression, his hair was disheveled and his eyes tired, he stopped pacing. "Kitty, I am so glad you are here, I was worried you had disappeared too! You see, a couple days ago, my friend told me how she wanted to protect her mother and stuff, however she didn't seem to be in the right mind. I was worried that something bad had befallen her mother so I followed her last night when she said she was going back to London for her mother and then… and then…" He broke off with a haunted look in his eyes.

"What?" Kitty asked.

"She saw me right after she got to London, I was hiding in the shadows, didn't make a noise, and yet _it_ somehow sensed me! This enormous black werewolf detached itself from the wall and came straight at me and…Melanie, that's my friend, shouted something. Then I turned and ran, I felt like it was right behind me for blocks, it got me on the arm and almost had my head too when Melanie stopped it. I don't remember much after that, but I know there was more than one werewolf, and I heard this sinister voice talking to her about a new London and a deal. Somehow, I managed to run away and then I called you." He glanced at her desperately, "You'll help me right? I've gotten myself into something I shouldn't have but I wanted to help her, she is usually very cheerful but she seemed so miserable the past week and now she has disappeared!" He gabbled out.

Half listening, Kitty had been looking at his arm in worry; it had a nasty long gash on it. "Of course I'll help, but first, we need to get that arm looked at, I wonder if the hospital…"

"No!" Jacob shouted, "Absolutely not a hospital! Or any other public place, that person could have spies anywhere!"

Briefly, Kitty wondered if his paranoia was reoccurring again, surely a hospital… Wait! She could see if there were any bandages in Nathaniel's house!

"Come with me, I know a safe house!" Kitty whispered, hoping he'd calm down enough to listen to her.

Jacob sighed and followed her as they wound their way through the streets.

However, when they reached to abandoned magician sector he paused uncertainly. "Kitty, um why are we _here_?"

Fiddling with his hands, he looked around nervously, to him the buildings loomed like giant forbidding towers, he took a step back. Growling impatiently, Kitty dragged him onward, it felt like pulling a mule, a stubborn stupid mule. Swearing profusely, she stomped up the steps and fumbled with the handle. With a click, the door opened revealing…nothing. Her eyebrows rose.

"Huh?" Kitty muttered.

Voices drifted from the other room, occasionally turning high pitched.

"Um Kitty, I _really_ don't think this is safe, if there is people in there…hey wait!"

Without turning around she had already walked into the house. Kitty heard Jacob's irregular shifty footsteps behind her so she continued into the guest reception room. In one corner was a black piece of charcoal in a glass case on a stand. In another corner…

"What are you guys going on about?!" Kitty demanded angrily, "Don't you know we have to keep quiet in here to avoid detection?!"

Nathaniel and Bartimaeus didn't hear her; they were too busy arguing with each other.

"It's _all_ your fault, why didn't you do anything? It's dangerous out there with Lovelace and whatnot."

"Why is it my fault? You were the one who stood there looking dumb and stupid after she left."

"You did too!"

"Did not!"

"Guys!"

"Did too!"

"GUYS, WOULD YOU PLEASE STOP ACTING LIKE BABIES AND START LISTENING TO ME!" Kitty shouted exasperatedly.

She obtained the desired results right away.

"We are not…" Bartimaeus began.

"Ok, so here's the deal, remember Jacob, you know, the one you people KIDNAPPED and _held as a hostage,_ that one? Well he is going to be staying with us until his arm heals and we find his girlfriend."

"What girlfriend?" Asked Jacob, who had just walked in, then suddenly he noticed the magician and the demon. "What! Kitty! This is a trap, we must run, come on!" Terrified, he grabbed her arm and started dragging her towards the door.

Kitty dug her toes into the floor and resisted. "They are friends, don't bother!"

"What friends, they are not my friends!" He insisted.

"Shut up and listen to me! Will you please?" Kitty snarled. "Why are all my _friends_ a pain in the neck I'd never know."

She had been having a bad day already and had been told her good friend just almost got eaten by a werewolf. Now when she felt that it had already reached the lowest point possible it comes to her attention that the idiots she was currently in company with might not cooperate with one another, just the thought sent her blood boiling.

"Alright!" She hissed and pointed at Bartimaeus, "You sir, are going to zip your lips for the rest of the day." She then gestured at Jacob, "And you, sit down so I can have a look at that arm. And you Mandrake don't get me started on you. Keep out of my hair for a couple minutes please."

Against Jacob's protests, she pushed him down into a plumb chair. The other two grumbled and gave him hostile stares, until Nathaniel left the room for something.

Having a little experience from dressing wounds in the resistance, she had skimmed the books on healing. Kitty scanned the room for anything that might prove useful but came up short. Jacob's arm had started bleeding again and was staining his jacket. Kitty pushed her hair out of her face and pushed up her sleeves in determination, if there wasn't anything she could do, she doubted the doctors could do better.

Nathanial shuffled over, "ahem" he coughed.

"I might..err…have stored a first aid kit in my home and so here."

He shoved a metal box into her hands and exited.

"Thanks!" Kitty called after his retreating shadow.


	12. Chapter 12

Bartimaeus

"My house does not exist as a hotel!" Nathaniel complained to me later that day. All was quiet, or as quiet as possible, we were in his bedroom at this point. It was a shabby affair, not very impressive at all. He sat on his bed looking out the window at the London skies and I leaned against the wall. Cheerily, I snorted in amusement, "What did you expect? This is Kitty we are talking about. I bet she would bring home the entire stray population if she set her mind on it."

"Oh joy." Nervously, he adjusted the length of his hair. "You think this is fairly presentable?" He questioned, swinging around to face me.

He had molded his hair more or less into the shape and length it had been when we first met, a tad longer but it appeared a vast improvement from his mop at fourteen. I liked it, made him look like a nerd.

"Hardly, you look like a dead possum." Ignoring his protests, I continued. "But if it is Kitty you are trying to please, and it _is_ is it not? Then it will do, she is not picky."

Flushing, Nathaniel ran a hand through his hair "I am not! Since Britain is no longer at war with America…there is no need for my hair to be kept that way."

How had he caught up so fast on the latest news I'd never know, probably a magician thing.

He sneezed suddenly as a cloud of dust drifted into the air.

"You do realize that is dead skin right?" He said as I had not moved even though the cloud was lazily moving toward my face.

"Hmmm" I murmured.

Nathaniel made a big show of patting down the pillow and airing his blanket while I watched him.

After a while, he began to get uncomfortable. "Don't you have anything better to do?" He asked me in annoyance. "Go stare at the wall for all I care but please stop eyeing me like I am some poor prey about to be killed. It is putting me off. Actually, Kitty is your master is she not? Go protect her or something."

Pushing myself off the wall, I began to head for the door. It was no use arguing with him when he got like this. We both didn't feel like yelling. Being thoughtful and considerate, I did not tell him that I saw straight through his little act. The fool, he just wanted to make sure no harm came to his beloved; he sure had a twisted way of expressing his concern. Grinning to myself, I strolled down the hall, envisioning all the ways I could use this bit of private information to torture him.

A perk of being able to read his mind.

That is why as I went downstairs, I crashed into Jacob who was just coming up. In a daze and mind spinning, I found myself twisted in an awkward undignified heap. Our legs had somehow wound up together and when I tried to extricate myself, the wretched human gave a cry and jabbed his elbow into my eye. Ages of experience made me recoil in pain and reflexively spring away in the form of a hissing snake. Fangs bared, mind muddled, I turned on the human.

Only to get grabbed by the neck by a very miffed Kitty, she was choking me and I had trouble getting my words out.

"See? Bartimaeus is harmless, you have nothing to fear!" She announced.

Jacob was trying to piece himself back together, shivering he gasped. "I-I was just heading up the stairs and…and this _demon_ attacked me!"

"Attacked? Well let me tell you buster, I am Bartimaeus of Urk! I have defeated Nouda, Ramuthra and Farqual! If I had attacked you, you would have been dead in the blink of an eye! Oh no, I get jabbed in the eyeball, generally mistreated and falsely accused of an act I did not commit!" I roared in a terrible voice. A truly terrible voice, due to the fact that Kitty had a vice grip on my neck, my voice sounded like a shrew.

I couldn't see kitty, my eyes were bulging too much for that, but I knew she was rolling her eyes.

"Oh don't be so melodramatic. We are wasting time here. Jacob, what did I tell you about this?" Kitty ground out. She let go off me and I reverted back to Ptolemy's form. Dusting myself off, I glanced at Jacob in a haughty manner and continued down the stairs.

I could hear Kitty and Jacob start another debate as they stomped to the guestrooms. Then I recalled that I had to protect Kitty, I groaned inwardly. The pair trod slowly to their separate rooms, silently and unseen, a mouse scurried after the girl.

Not wanting to be rude, I curled up in a corner and waited till I heard a gentle rhythm of breathing being established. After that it seemed a piece of cake, I set up some nexus trigger traps and alarms around the general area, blah blah blah.

Of course nothing was ever that easy.

At precisely one o clock, the mouse's keen sensitive ears picked up the faint sound of wing beats. A minute later something heavy landed on the roof, no make that two heavy things. Then a tapping sound, like someone walking. By this time the mouse was fully alert, its muscles bunched, in a smooth perfect motion it leaped onto the window sill. Moments later a sliver of smoke, black as the night, slithered out into the darkness. Stealth and cunning were necessary to a good defense, especially on a night like this. Mist hung in the air and the coldness tugged at my fur. The mouse's yellow eyes searched the blackness for the faint telltale aura that was a dead giveaway to the location of the spirit. To my surprise, I found it, two auras; the enemy was not even trying to hide it. Shape-shifting into a jet black griffin, I pressed myself against the roof and crouched low as the spirits flew down to Nathaniel's window.


	13. Chapter 13

Author's note: thanks for the reviews , I appreciate it a lot, keep them coming and tell me what you guys think!

Nathaniel

The house had long fallen silent. Everything was still. Nathaniel lay staring up at the darkness. For much of the night he had tossed and turned on the bed. Nightmares plagued him and he could not rest. In the most recent one, he was with Lovelace and they watched as the Pearl was activated and swarms of Spirits exploded every which way, destroying everything in their path. Kitty and Bartimaeus had stood in their way and were overwhelmed. He could only stand rooted to the spot as Lovelace cackled and London went up in flames. In his dream, Lovelace's face changed to that of Makepeace and the playwright patted Nathaniel on the shoulder. "This all happened because of you." He sneered. Nathaniel had woken in a cold sweat and could not fall asleep again. The magician kept on running through what-if scenarios, however as much as he tried he could not envision a happy ending.

_Where did Kitty hide the pearl?_ Hopefully she had been smart enough to keep the danger away from herself but he doubted it. He also doubted Kitty knew how dangerous Lovelace truly was.

Why was Lovelace alive anyway? He should be deceased; Ramuthra had eaten him for goodness sake! Of course that image set an uninvited parallel to his encounter with Nouda. And _he_ was still alive and kicking, with a slight hybrid handicap of course. Not that he should care, but he still did. Kitty's annoyed dismissal of it had made him feel guilty that he did not come find her sooner and caused him to feel better yet it did nothing to alleviate the fact that he was a _hybrid. _The magician unfortunately continued to feel like he had committed some sort of sin. He let his thoughts wander in circles for a time until he heard a knock on his window.

Years of expecting assassination attempts and paranoia leapt to the forefront of his mind and the magician sprang out of bed with a green spasm forming on his fingertips.

His eyes fixed on the window, and he relaxed a bit. Komodo and Cinnamon (these are false names) grinned at him from outside. The emerald green lizard tapped the window impatiently with a curved talon. Nathaniel struggled to open the window latch in the dark but finally succeeded. Immediately, cold air rushed in and the temperature plummeted.

Golden silted eyes peered into the room, "Why do you still remain

At this house?" Cinnamon asked quizzically.

Nathaniel suddenly found it hard to look her in the eye, "Because this _is_ my house." He muttered out of the side of his mouth.

"What do you mean? " Komodo butted in, "…you are a spirit aren't you, and this can't possibly be your house!"

Cinnamon glanced at the lizard, "unless he is not a spirit. That would explain why he needs to sleep and consume food."

Komodo cast him a shocked look, a pinch of uncertainty creeping into his normally cheerful expression.

"Don't be daft, right?" The lizard looked at Nathaniel pleadingly.

"It is complicated." The magician wasn't sure how much he should tell the spirits. He had never dealt with these situations before. The way komodo was staring at him made him feel like he was digging his own grave.

"I can't believe you!" Bared teeth, betrayed eyes, claws scraped the window sill.

Cinnamon remained silent.

Nathaniel shrank back, uncertain. It felt like all his problems began to compile into a monster he couldn't fight.

"I am a hybrid! I am half human!" He blurted out, finally caving to his conscience.

Komodo stared, his mouth opened and closed, no sound came forth.

"You should give us some credit, we knew something was off! We are not that dumb!" Cinnamon hissed.

She then took in the petrified state of her companion, "I retract the "we"."

Komodo blinked, a foggy understanding had begun to dawn on him. "So that was why you were so _bad_ at every single thing."

Nathaniel scowled, "Thanks a lot. I have been trying very hard."

The lizard guffawed.

The atmosphere eased slowly back into a comfortable mood, although a chilly wind still swept around the room. The moon appeared behind the clouds and a silver shine covered everything outside.

Cinnamon pondered a while, she furrowed her brow, "You must tell us at least half the truth. Let me guess, you know _this girl and that spirit. _You trust them so you let them take away the pearl. The girl bit is fine, I understand but the_ djinn_…he is the worst, never seen anyone that infuriating get off with less that a scratch! I wanted to claw his eyeballs out, pull out his intestines then…"

A green tail whacked her playfully, "Alright, I better stop you before you get to all the graphic details and such and such. Believe you me, she could go on for hours!" The lizard rolled his eyes, then he leaned in furtively, "Apparently it is an acquired taste. Spent too much time in Rome she did. A bit off up here." He pointed to his head.

Nathaniel found himself nodding in agreement, there was always something about Komodo that caused him to relax and be himself. Unlike Cinnamon, who tended to be rather bossy and a drama queen, the lizard was kindly and quite approachable, the passing stranger almost could not tell he was at least a medium level afrit, a spirit even.

"…So you change into a dragon now and leave with us for a night." Komodo finished.

Nathaniel had not been paying attention and the sentence completely took him by surprise.

"Wait, what?" He managed to get out before the wind was knocked out of him. The window was suddenly blocked as Komodo leapt in. A clawed hand wrapped around his waist. He chocked, completely unaware of anything besides the horrifying fact that he was now flopping in the air and the scenery had begun to whistle past at 70 miles per hour. His arms and legs jerked irregularly as the lizard beat his wings. London was unusually quiet, a curfew had been put in effect and no one dared venture out at this hour. It was almost calming, if he had not been clinging to the Lizard in fear. Soft muffled wingbeats sounded as Cinnamon caught up, she was in the guise of a snowy owl and her dappled white feathers stood out in stark contrast from the black night.

"If you had been listening, you would have realized that we are doing you an extreme, horrid favor and you would have been grateful, _hybrid._" She sighed, her beak clacked a few times in disappointment, "I had been looking forward to that sight."

"Grumpy as always…" Nathaniel muttered. "Wait, what kind of a favor?"

"Komodo, drop. Him." Cinnamon laughed hysterically.

"Yes ma'am." The lizard's grip began to loosen.

Nathaniel paled, this he could not deal with, surely she would not be this evil, he could barely glide from cloud to cloud, never mind actually fly. "H-hold on a second, you can't be serious, I am really going to die!" He stammered. The sheer height was making him woozy and his hands became sweaty. He clung desperately to the amphibian's arm, however smooth, seamless scales caused him to lose his balance. His legs kicked out into thin air, the magician's eyes widened in pure fear. He dangled in midair for a moment, then Komodo let go with an apologetic look.

Nathaniel gave a silent scream that was snatched away by the wind as he felt literally nothing supporting his waist. Gravity kicked in and he fell, flailing. He saw his hair blown upwards by the force of the wind and desperately closed his eyes to shapeshift into a dragon. He didn't mind the falling so much as he hated the feeling of freefall. It messed with his thoughts and he could not picture his dragon form in his mind's eye. He forced his eyes open and perceived the ground rushing up to embrace him. _Wings, wings…come on…_By some hidden instinct, he let his body relax and a silent calm wash over. The next moment he jerked back as his fall was halted abruptly, he flinched in surprise as he felt his wings, _wings_, lower him into a gentle descent and glide. The moment his feet hit the ground, his knees buckled and he collapsed. The human turned dragon felt himself trembling in shock and the remnants of fear. A wave of relief washed over him. His tail twitched spasmodically as he struggled to catch his breath. A large hand patted him on the head, the dragon's eyes fixated on a huge burly man with a brown beard.

"What, no thank you?" the man laughed, "Though I suppose now I understand why mother birds fling babies out of their nests. Look you, your reaction time and shapeshifting improved drastically, a novice like you…"

"Don't. Even. I had a heart attack! W-What if I had not opened my wings, I would have been a bloody pancake on the bloody ground! Think before you act next time or else there won't be a next time!" Nathaniel yelled, he felt like his heart was going to jump out of his chest; it was beating so fast. He could not _believe_ he had let his guard down in front of these idiots.

"Okay, for your next class, we are going to teach you how to fly, the ultimate crash course in one night! Have fun and don't die on me!" Cinnamon sung in an off-key voice. A slight glint of madness showed in her eyes.

"H-hey, are you even listening to me? Hello?...this is crazy, I am going back to bed." Nathaniel stumbled up and started going the opposite way.

Komodo side stepped and blocked him, "Come on man, we are trying to help you, believe it or not, so don't give us such a cold shoulder, hmm? Besides, do it for Kitty, you like her don't you? I bet she will be pleased. "

Nathaniel felt his face flush, "What kind of twisted logic is _that?_ I do NOT like her, where did you get that from? It would never work anyways now that I am a hybrid. And…!"

"You look flustered," Komodo observed ignoring Nathaniel's protests completely, "Trust me, I know these things."

The magician glanced around wildly, looking for some excuse that was plausible enough to deceive two spirits that have lived many lifetimes. However, he mused, it was true that he did have time to spare and he could brush up his spirit skills, which at the moment weren't that great. He could barely fly. It would be nice to actually have some control over his new-found powers. But still, sneaking out at night did not really become him, it might raise suspicions if Jacob found his room empty and became alarmed. Oh well, it could not be helped, just in case he actually ran into Lovelace he could at least make a quick escape skywards. And he hated to admit it but he actually wanted to please Kitty, not because he liked her of course…

"Alright." The pale blue dragon agreed. "What do you want to practice?"

Cinnamon grinned slyly, "I still haven't forgiven you for keeping the truth from us but I did notice you stopped running away right after Komodo mentioned Kitty."

"WHAT," the dragon snapped agitated, "Don't start this _again_."

"Don't be such a spoil sport sissy, let's go already!"

The emerald lizard took off in a cloud of dust, leaving the other two to choke and cough.


	14. Chapter 14

Authors note: Apologies for the lateness of this chapter, life has been hammering at me for a while now. No worries, this fanfic will continue on like all ways. Thank you all for the support and review!

Kitty

The following morning, Kitty woke up exhausted. The past day's events seemed like a dream, it had all happened too fast. The only reason she got out of bed was to make sure her friends didn't kill each other. By some stroke of luck, the house had not burnt down yet. She found Jacob lurking by the stairs, unwilling to go down but not keen on staying put either.

"Good morning! It has been such a long time since we talked in person." Kitty said sleepily. It was a pathetic attempt to make him feel welcome at best and a jab at the painful past at worst. Overall, not the best sentence.

Jacob cast her a hurt glance. "You know I was busy, I did mail you letters from time to time. But you seemed so intent on staying in London."

Kitty groaned inwardly, his extreme fear of spirits and his friendly concern for her combined was at times very hard to take, especially when he got repetitive. "I assure you that Bartimaeus is friendly! He is a great friend and one _you_ are going to want in hard times."

Her friend furrowed his brow, "Oh, so he is suddenly are your "friend". The very same dijin that kidnapped, threatened and almost got us killed? You have some serious issues with making friends."

"Oh yes, the very same one that saved my life, kept my existence secret for 3 years, saved London, trusts me… And you know what the best thing is?"

She paused in her rant, realizing that she was starting to argue with her longtime friend. Jacob was staring at her disbelievingly.

"He actually _listens _to me. He put aside all his reservations for the greater good…" She finished with dwindling enthusiasm.

"So you are saying I should too." Jacob concluded as he began to walk down the stairs.

Too late did she realize he was now avoiding her.

Rolling her eyes, she decided that it was not worth pursuing. Their friendship had survived the tests of time; it could survive a little spat. Besides, she had achieved her original objective, making him go down the stairs. The stairs were plain, and the floor hardwood, she noted with amusement. It appealed to her. Apparently Nathaniel did have _some_ taste in furnishing after all.

She made her way to the kitchen for some breakfast. Nathaniel was sitting at the only table chewing a jam sandwich while reading the paper. Kitty found herself grinning happily, she could still not believe he was alive; it was like he had never disappeared. Kitty found the paper odd, after all it _was _the _morning _addition and the press simply did not deliver to abandoned houses. She soon dismissed it and pulled up a chair.

"Good morning."

Nathaniel caught her eye and pushed a plate of already made sandwiches across the table.

"You made these?" Kitty questioned.

"I put it together; if that is what you mean, thank Gladstone the jam didn't expire." Nathaniel explained. He put aside the paper.

"So… about Jacob…" Kitty started. "You don't mind him staying for a while right?"

Nathaniel cast her an unamused look. "Right. What is his problem?"

Kitty gulped down sandwich, "Well, the way he told the tale, it sounds like his girlfriend got into some bad business and Jacob found out about it. However, it seems the girl cares and stopped the attacking werewolves from killing him."

"Werewolves?" Nathaniel asked, "But they were almost wiped out last month! I doubt Farrar would deal in underworld business."

"You sure caught up on all the action. The way you say it, it sounds like Farrar is still alive."

"Well, there is no reason for her not to be…" Nathaniel interjected.

"You are assuming everyone can follow your example and magically reincarnate." Kitty snorted.

"I never said that. Besides, this could be connected to Lovelace…."

"Well either way, it could be worth investigating."

"I don't think you could find her, with London being London." Bartimaeus flatly stated, after a bit of debate, Bartimaeus had agreed to help her.

"What if we could find a way to lure her here?" Kitty proposed.

"Like what Mandrake did to you a couple years ago?" Bartimaeus smirked. "My my, you are becoming more like him every day."

"I fail to see how you connected the two; this is far less dangerous and far more helpful."

"Funny, that is sort of what he thought…"

"Hilarious, now can you get on with it?" Kitty scowled. She still disliked being compared.

"Get on with what? You still haven't told me who to kidnap."

"Who said you were _kidnapping?!" _

Bartimaeus smirked, "You did chum, you said "lure her here" so I assumed you wanted me to kidnap her relative and bring them here as bait."

Originally, Kitty had wanted to convince the girl to stop interacting with the malicious person, whoever that was. But she now saw that impossible without some desperate measures. She didn't even know who and where the girl was!

"This is just great…" Kitty groaned and put her head in her hands.

"But do get on with it, I don't have any other plan." She muttered through her fingers.

"Go ask Jacob who her mother is and where she lives, he is bound to know. After all, he _is _paranoid. After that…I'll take care of it. " Bartimaeus stretched and got up from the sofa in the living room.

"You could try being friendly you know." Kitty shot back, she had hoped they would have made up by now.

"I _am_ friendly, I haven't eaten him yet. So don't give me any chances." Bartimaeus yawned lazily.

Kitty looked around for Jacob. She heard footsteps upstairs and began to head up.

"Oh and Kitty, ever notice how these events all happened around the same time? I don't think it is a coincidence. The empire is a bit rough around the edges right now; it just needs a little push and BOOM." Bartimaeus made an explosive movement with his hands.

Kitty flinched. "I won't let that happen, the commoners finally have a voice, things can change for the better…" She griped the railing, her traveling plans had been thrown out the window.

Bartimaeus cut in: "It is not about choice you know, more like who is stronger. I sure hope you are ready. When empires reach a tipping point there is always the greatest conflict. Under the right circumstances, people start to have crazy ideas and these ideas might become reality. Hm…quite like yours actually."

"We can do this, I know we can." She said to the staircase.

"Don't die."


End file.
